U.S. patent application number 13/837136 was filed with the patent office on 2013-08-15 for flexible, abrasion resistant textile sleeve and method of construction thereof.
This patent application is currently assigned to Federal-Mogul Powertrain, Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Federal-Mogul Powertrain, Inc.. Invention is credited to Emi Itoh.
Application Number | 20130206275 13/837136 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 48944627 |
Filed Date | 2013-08-15 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130206275 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Itoh; Emi |
August 15, 2013 |
Flexible, Abrasion Resistant Textile Sleeve and Method of
Construction Thereof
Abstract
A textile sleeve for routing and protecting elongate members and
method of construction thereof is provided. The sleeve includes an
elongate wall having opposite edges extending parallel to a central
axis of the sleeve. The wall is woven with warp yarns extending
parallel to the axis and fill yarns extending transverse to the
warp yarns. The warp yarns include monofilament yarns within an
intermediate region of the wall and multifilament yarns within
opposite edge regions of the wall to enhance abrasion resistance
and curl, respectively, and the fill yarns include monofilament
yarns larger in diameter than the fill monofilament yarns to
provide further abrasion resistance, enhanced curl strength and
multifilament yarns to provide increased coverage, maintain
flexibility, and to maintain the warp monofilaments in their
intended position.
Inventors: |
Itoh; Emi; (Kanagawa,
JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Federal-Mogul Powertrain, Inc.; |
|
|
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Federal-Mogul Powertrain,
Inc.
Southfield
MI
|
Family ID: |
48944627 |
Appl. No.: |
13/837136 |
Filed: |
March 15, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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12797798 |
Jun 10, 2010 |
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13837136 |
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61186174 |
Jun 11, 2009 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
139/35 ;
139/387R |
Current CPC
Class: |
D06C 7/02 20130101; D03D
15/00 20130101; D03D 1/0041 20130101; D10B 2401/04 20130101; H02G
3/0481 20130101; B60R 16/0215 20130101; D03D 3/08 20130101; D03D
3/02 20130101; B60R 16/02 20130101; D10B 2331/04 20130101; D10B
2331/301 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
139/35 ;
139/387.R |
International
Class: |
D03D 3/02 20060101
D03D003/02 |
Claims
1. A textile sleeve for routing and protecting elongate members,
comprising: an elongate wall having opposite edges extending
parallel to a central axis of the sleeve, said wall being woven
with warp yarns extending parallel to said central axis and fill
yarns extending transverse to said warp yarns, said warp yarns
being provided at least in part as first monofilament yarns and
said fill yarns being provided as second monofilament yarns and
second multifilament yarns, said second monofilament yarns having a
larger diameter than said first monofilament yarns.
2. The textile sleeve of claim 1 wherein said second monofilament
yarns have a diameter about 40 percent larger than said first
monofilament yarns.
3. The textile sleeve of claim 1 wherein said warp yarns further
include first multifilament yarns.
4. The textile sleeve of claim 3 wherein said first multifilament
yarns extend over an edge region adjacent said opposite edges and
said first monofilament yarns extend over an intermediate region
between said edge regions, said edge regions being free of said
first monofilament yarns.
5. The textile sleeve of claim 4 wherein said warp yarns in said
intermediate region comprise only monofilament yarns.
6. The textile sleeve of claim 4 wherein said first multifilament
yarns are heat-shrunk in length.
7. The textile sleeve of claim 1 wherein said second monofilament
yarns and said second multifilament fill yarns are dual inserted
with said warp yarns to provide discrete pairs of said second
monofilament yarns and said second multifilament fill yarns spaced
axially from one another along said central axis.
8. The textile sleeve of claim 1 wherein said second monofilament
fill yarns are heat set to bias the wall into a curled
configuration about said central axis.
9. A textile sleeve for routing and protecting elongate members,
comprising: an elongate wall having opposite edges extending
parallel to a central axis of the sleeve, said wall being woven
with warp yarns extending parallel to said central axis and fill
yarns extending transverse to said warp yarns, said warp yarns
being provided as first monofilament yarns and first multifilament
yarns and said fill yarns being provided as second monofilament
yarns and second multifilament yarns, said first multifilament
yarns extending over an edge region adjacent said opposite edges
and said first monofilament yarns extending over an intermediate
region between said edge regions, said edge regions being free of
said first monofilament yarns and said intermediate region being
free of said first multifilament yarns.
9. The textile sleeve of claim 8 wherein said warp yarns in said
edge regions comprise only multifilament yarns and said warp yarns
in said intermediate region comprise only monofilament yarns.
10. The textile sleeve of claim 8 wherein said first multifilament
yarns are heat-shrunk in length.
11. The textile sleeve of claim 8 wherein said second monofilament
yarns have a larger diameter than said first monofilament
yarns.
12. The textile sleeve of claim 8 wherein said second monofilament
yarns and said second multifilament fill yarns are dual inserted
with said warp yarns to provide discrete pairs of said second
monofilament yarns and said second multifilament fill yarns spaced
axially from one another along said central axis.
13. A method of constructing a textile sleeve wrappable about a
central axis, comprising: providing first monofilament yarns having
a first diameter; providing second monofilament yarns having a
second diameter that is larger than the first diameter; providing
second multifilament yarns; and weaving an elongate wrappable wall
having opposite edges extending parallel to the central axis with
the first monofilament yarns forming warp yarns extending parallel
to the central axis and the second monofilament and second
multifilament yarns forming fill yarns extending transverse to the
warp yarns.
14. The method of claim 13 further including dual inserting the
second monofilament and second multifilament fill yarns with the
first monofilament yarns to provide discrete pairs of the second
monofilament and second multifilament fill yarns spaced from one
another along the central axis.
15. The method of claim 13 further including heat-setting the
second monofilament fill yarns to bias the wall into a curled
configuration about the central axis.
16. The method of claim 13 further including providing first
multifilament yarns and weaving the first multifilament yarns to
form warp yarns extending along edge regions adjacent the opposite
edges.
17. The method of claim 16 further including providing all the warp
yarns in the edge regions as multifilament yarns.
18. The method of claim 17 further including providing all the warp
yarns in an intermediate region between the edge regions as
monofilament yarns.
19. The method of claim 13 further including heat-forming the
second monofilament yarns to cause the opposite edges to be biased
in overlapping relation with one another.
20. A method of constructing a textile sleeve wrappable about a
central axis, comprising: providing first monofilament yarns;
providing first multifilament yarns; providing second monofilament
yarns; providing second multifilament yarns; and weaving an
elongate wrappable wall having opposite edges extending parallel to
the central axis with the first monofilament yarns and first
multifilament yarns forming warp yarns extending parallel to the
central axis and the second monofilament and second multifilament
yarns forming fill yarns extending transverse to the warp yarns,
wherein the first multifilament yarns extend over an edge region
adjacent the opposite edges and the first monofilament yarns extend
over an intermediate region between the edge regions, with the edge
regions being free of the first monofilament yarns and the
intermediate region being free of the first multifilament
yarns.
21. The method of claim 20 further including providing the second
monofilament yarns having a larger diameter than the first
monofilament yarns.
22. The method of claim 21 further including heat-setting the
second monofilament fill yarns to bias the opposite edges into
overlapping relation with one another.
23. The method of claim 22 further including shrinking the first
multifilaments yarns to tighten the opposite edges while
heat-setting the second monofilament yarns.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S.
application Ser. No. 12/797,798, filed Jun. 6, 2010, which claims
the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/186,174,
filed Jun. 11, 2009, both of which are incorporated herein by
reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Technical Field
[0003] This invention relates generally to textile sleeves for
protecting elongate members, and more particularly to woven
sleeves.
[0004] 2. Related Art
[0005] It is known to wrap wires and wire harnesses in protective
sleeves, such as in automobiles, aircraft or aerospace craft, to
provide protection to the wires against abrasion, fluid and thermal
affects. In order to achieve the desired protection, the protective
sleeve may have multiple layers, with some of the layers being
specifically provided for different types of protection. For
example, one layer may be provided for water resistance, e.g. a
sheet of plastic material, while another layer may be provided for
abrasion resistance, and yet another layer may be provided for
protection against thermal conditions, e.g. a non-woven layer.
Unfortunately, although the aforementioned multilayer sleeves may
provide suitable protection against the various environmental
conditions, they are typically bulky, thereby requiring an
increased volume of space, being relatively heavy and exhibiting
limited flexibility, thereby being subject to kinking and opening
along wrapped edges. Other known woven sleeves 1 in addition to the
multilayer sleeves discussed above also exhibit hoop strength and
kinking issues when bent about corners and into a generally
u-shaped configuration, such as shown in FIG. 7, thereby
potentially exposing the member 2 contained in a cavity 3 of the
sleeve 1 to contamination. This is made possible as a result of the
relatively inflexible, rigid edges 4 being opened away from one
another as the sleeve 1 is bent. Accordingly, wrappable sleeves
constructed in accordance with the prior art can prove problematic
in some applications, particularly applications requiring routing
through tight, winding areas, and applications having weight
restrictions, such as aircraft and aerospace applications, for
example.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] One aspect of the invention provides a woven sleeve for
routing and protecting elongate members from exposure to abrasion
and other environmental conditions, such as contamination. The
sleeve has a flexible, abrasion resistant, self-curling elongate
wall constructed from woven monofilament and multifilament yarns.
The wall has opposite edges extending parallel to a central axis of
the sleeve. The wall is woven with warp yarns extending parallel to
the central axis and fill yarns extending transverse to the warp
yarns. The warp yarns are provided at least in part as first
monofilament yarns and the fill yarns are provided as second
monofilament yarns and second multifilament yarns. The second
monofilament yarns have a larger diameter than the first
monofilament yarns, thereby enhancing the closing force of the
heat-formed wall.
[0007] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the warp
yarns further include first multifilament yarns that extend over an
edge region adjacent the opposite edges to assist in preventing the
opposite edges from opening when the sleeve is bent around a
corner, wherein the first monofilament yarns extend over an
intermediate region between the edge regions to provide enhanced
resistance to abrasion, with the edge regions being free of the
first monofilament yarns, further enhancing the ability of the
sleeve wall to remain in its intended heat-formed wrapped
configuration.
[0008] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a woven
sleeve for routing and protecting elongate members from exposure to
abrasion and other environmental conditions, such as contamination,
is provided. The sleeve has an elongate wall having opposite edges
extending parallel to a central axis of the sleeve. The wall is
woven with warp yarns extending parallel to the central axis and
fill yarns extending transverse to the warp yarns. The warp yarns
are provided as first monofilament yarns and first multifilament
yarns and the fill yarns are provided as second monofilament yarns
and second multifilament yarns. The first multifilament yarns
extend over an edge region adjacent the opposite edges to assist in
maintaining the opposite edges in their intended overlapping
relation when the sleeve is bent around a corner and the first
monofilament yarns extending over an intermediate region between
the edge regions. The edge regions are free of the first
monofilament yarns and the intermediate region is free of the first
multifilament yarns.
[0009] In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, the
second monofilament yarns have a larger diameter than the first
monofilament yarns, thereby enhancing the curl-strength of the
sleeve wall to maintain the opposite edges in their intended
overlapping relation when the sleeve is bent around a corner.
[0010] In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, a
method of constructing a textile sleeve wrappable about a central
axis is provided. The method includes providing first monofilament
yarns having a first diameter; providing second monofilament yarns
having a second diameter that is larger than the first diameter to
enhance the curl-strength of the sleeve; and providing second
multifilament yarns. Then, weaving an elongate wrappable wall
having opposite edges extending parallel to the central axis with
the first monofilament yarns forming warp yarns extending parallel
to the central axis and the second monofilament and second
multifilament yarns forming fill yarns extending transverse to the
warp yarns.
[0011] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the
method further includes providing first multifilament yarns and
weaving the first multifilament yarns to form warp yarns extending
along edge regions adjacent the opposite edges to assist in
maintaining the opposite edges in their intended overlapping
relation when the sleeve is bent around a corner.
[0012] In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention,
another method of constructing a textile sleeve wrappable about a
central axis is provided. The method includes providing first
monofilament yarns; providing first multifilament yarns; providing
second monofilament yarns; and providing second multifilament
yarns. Then, weaving an elongate wrappable wall having opposite
edges extending parallel to the central axis with the first
monofilament yarns and first multifilament yarns forming warp yarns
extending parallel to the central axis and the second monofilament
and second multifilament yarns forming fill yarns extending
transverse to the warp yarns. The first multifilament yarns extend
over an edge region adjacent the opposite edges to assist in
maintaining the opposite edges in their intended overlapping
relation when the sleeve is bent around a corner and the first
monofilament yarns extend over an intermediate region between the
edge regions. The edge regions are formed being free of the first
monofilament yarns and the intermediate region is formed being free
of the first multifilament yarns.
[0013] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the
method further includes providing the second monofilament yarns
having a larger diameter than the first monofilament yarns, thereby
enhancing the curl-strength of the sleeve wall to maintain the
opposite edges in their intended overlapping relation when the
sleeve is bent around a corner.
[0014] A sleeve constructed in accordance with the invention not
only provides enhanced protection to elongate members contained
therein, but is economical in manufacture, and has an enhanced
ability to remain in its self-curled configuration about the
elongate members.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] These and other aspects, features and advantages will become
readily apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the
following detailed description of presently preferred embodiments
and best mode, appended claims, and accompanying drawings, in
which:
[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a woven,
self-wrapping sleeve constructed in accordance with one aspect of
the invention carrying and protecting elongate members therein;
[0017] FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial view of a wall of the sleeve
of FIG. 1;
[0018] FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a woven,
self-wrapping sleeve constructed in accordance with another aspect
of the invention carrying and protecting elongate members
therein;
[0019] FIG. 3A is a side view of the sleeve of FIG. 3 shown bent
into a u-shape;
[0020] FIG. 4 is a plan view of the sleeve of FIG. 3 showing a wall
of the sleeve in an unwrapped state;
[0021] FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the encircled area 5 of FIG.
4;
[0022] FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the encircled area 6 of FIG.
4; and
[0023] FIG. 7 is a side view of a wrappable sleeve constructed in
accordance with the prior shown bent into a u-shape.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0024] Referring in more detail to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows
schematic representation of a woven, self-wrapping textile sleeve,
referred to hereafter as sleeve 10, constructed in accordance with
one aspect of the invention. The sleeve 10 has a self-wrapping
elongate wall 12 for routing and protecting elongate members, such
as wires or a wire harness 14, for example, from exposure to
abrasion and the ingress of contamination, debris and the like. The
elongate wall 12 has opposite edges 16, 17 extending generally
parallel to a central, longitudinal axis 18, wherein the edges 16,
17 are preferably biased into overlapping relation with one another
in "cigarette wrapped" fashion to fully enclose the elongate
members 14 within a central cavity 20 of the sleeve. The cavity 20
is readily accessible along the full length of the longitudinal
axis 18 so that the elongate members 14 can be readily disposed
radially into the cavity 20, and conversely, removed from the
cavity 20, such as during service. To provide protection to the
elongate members 14 against abrasion, the wall 12 is woven with
warp yarns 22 provided as monofilament yarns and fill yarns 24
provided as monofilament yarns, wherein the fill monofilament yarns
24 provide additional, enhanced protection to the elongate members
14 against abrasion, while also providing the bias to self-curl the
opposite edges 16, 17 in overlapping relation with one another. The
bias is imparted by heat-setting the fill monofilament yarns 24
into their curled configuration about the central axis 18. In
addition to the fill monofilament yarns 24, the wall 12 has fill
yarns 26 provided as multifilament yarns. The multifilament yarns
26 provide additional surface area coverage of the wall 12 to the
elongate members 14 and inhibit ingress of contamination, debris,
or the like into the cavity 20, thereby providing enhanced
protection to the elongate members 14. In addition, the
multifilament yarns 26 maintain the warp monofilaments 22 in place
in their intended, as woven position by imparting friction on the
warp monofilaments 22, while providing the sleeve 10 with
sufficient flexibility for routing around corners, for example.
[0025] Depending on the application needs, the wall 12 can be
constructed having any suitable size, including length and
diameter. When the wall 12 is in its self-wrapped tubular
configuration, generally free from any externally applied forces,
the edges 16, 17 preferably overlap one another at least slightly
to fully enclose the cavity 20, and thus, provide enhanced
protection to the wires 14 contained in the cavity 20. The edges
16, 17 are readily extendable away from one another under an
externally applied force sufficient to overcome the bias imparted
by the fill monofilament yarns 24 to at least partially open and
expose the cavity 20. Accordingly, the wires 14 can be readily
disposed into the cavity 20 during assembly or removed from the
cavity 20 during service. Upon releasing the externally applied
force, the edges 16, 17 return automatically to their natural,
overlapping self-wrapped position under the bias imparted by the
heat-set fill monofilament yarns 24.
[0026] The monofilament yarns 22, 24 can be provided as any
suitable heat-settable polymeric material, such as polyphenylene
sulfide (PPS) or polyethyleneterephthalate (PET), for example. In
one exemplary sleeve embodiment, the monofilament yarns 22, 24 were
provided as PET having a diameter of about 0.22 mm. The wall 12 was
formed having a width (dimension extending between the edges 16, 17
with the wall 12 in a flattened state) of about 42 mm, and the
number of ends of the warp monofilaments 22 was 48. The fill
monofilament yarns 24 and the fill multifilament yarns 26 were dual
inserted having a pick per inch (PPI) of 10, however, a PPI between
about 8-12 is considered to be within a workable range. With such a
low PPI, interstices 28 are formed within the wall 12. Accordingly,
the monofilament and multifilament fill yarns 24, 26 provide
discrete pairs of the circumferentially extending monofilament and
multifilament fill yarns spaced axially along the central axis 18
from one another by the interstices 28 extending axially
therebetween. The multifilament yarns 26 were provided having a
denier of about 1250. The yarns 22, 24, 26 were woven using a plain
weave which resulted in the sleeve 10 having a wall thickness of
about 0.6 mm. In yet another exemplary sleeve embodiment, the
number of ends of the warp monofilaments 22 was 52, with all other
yarn factors remaining the same. It should be recognized that these
yarn factors can be modified by one skilled in the art in dimension
and number, while maintaining the warp yarns 22 as purely
monofilaments and the fill yarns 24, 26 as a combination of
monofilaments and multifilaments, while remaining within the spirit
and scope of the invention.
[0027] With the warp yarns 22 being provided as purely
monofilaments, the abrasion resistance of the sleeve assembly 10 is
enhanced. Further, with some of the fill yarns 24 being provided as
monofilaments, additional protection against abrasion is provided.
Further yet, with some of the fill yarns 26 being provided as
multifilaments, added surface area coverage is provided to the wall
12 to the elongate members 14, thereby further protecting the
cavity 20 against ingress of contamination, and further, the
multifilaments act to maintain the warp monofilaments 22 in their
intended location, even under external abrasion force.
[0028] FIG. 3 illustrates a woven, self-wrapping textile sleeve,
referred to hereafter as sleeve 110, constructed in accordance with
another aspect of the invention, wherein the same reference
numerals as used above, offset by a factor of 100, identify like
features.
[0029] The sleeve 110 has a self-wrapping wall 112, as heat-formed,
woven with warp yarns 122 provided as first monofilament yarns 122'
and first multifilament yarns 122'' and fill yarns 124 provided as
second monofilament yarns 124' and second multifilament yarns 126.
As discussed above, the second fill monofilament yarns 124' provide
additional, enhanced protection to the elongate members 114 against
abrasion, while also providing the bias to self-curl opposite edges
116, 117 of the wall in overlapping relation with one another upon
being heat-set into their curled configuration about a central axis
118 of the sleeve 110. The second multifilament yarns 126 provide
additional surface area coverage and maintain the warp first
monofilament yarns 122' in place in their intended, as woven
position, while providing the sleeve 110 with sufficient
flexibility for routing around corners, for example, as discussed
above for the sleeve 10.
[0030] The first and second monofilament yarns 122', 124' can be
provided as any suitable heat-settable polymeric material, such as
polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) or polyethyleneterephthalate (PET), for
example. In one exemplary sleeve embodiment, the first and second
monofilament yarns 122', 124' were provided as PET having diameters
of about 0.22 mm and 0.38 mm, respectively. Accordingly, the
diameter of the second monofilament yarns 124' extending in the
fill direction have a larger diameter than the first monofilament
yarns 122' extending in the warp direction. Preferably, the
diameters of the second monofilament yarns 124' are about 40
percent larger than the diameter of the first monofilament yarns
122'. In one example, the wall 112 was formed having a width W
(dimension extending between the edges 116, 117 with the wall 112
in a flattened state, as shown in FIG. 4) of about 42 mm, and the
number of total ends of the warp yarns was 52. The total number of
warp ends is broken down in to three discrete regions, with there
being two edge regions 30 adjacent to and extending directly along
the opposite edges 116, 117 and an intermediate region 32 extending
between the opposite edge regions 30. The warp yarns 122 in the
edge regions 30 each comprise only first multifilament yarns 122''
and the warp yarns in the intermediate region 32 comprise only
first monofilament yarns 122'. Accordingly, the opposite edge
regions 30 do not include monofilament yarns, which has been found
to enhance the ability of the edges 116, 117 to remain in their
intended configuration upon being routed about corners, and the
intermediate region 32 does not include multifilament yarns,
thereby enhance the resistance to abrasion. In the exemplary
sample, the total number of ends of yarn in each of the edge
regions was 6, and the total number of ends or yarn in the
intermediate region was 40, for a combined total of 52 ends of
yarn.
[0031] As with the sleeve 10, the second monofilament yarns 124'
and the second multifilament yarns 126 were dual inserted with one
another having a pick per inch (PPI) of 10, however, a PPI between
about 8-12 is considered to be within a workable range. With such a
low PPI, interstices 128 are formed within the wall 112.
Accordingly, the second monofilament and second multifilament fill
yarns 124', 126 provide discrete pairs of the circumferentially
extending monofilament and multifilament fill yarns 124', 126
spaced from one another axially along the central axis 118 by the
interstices 128 extending therebetween. The first and second
multifilament yarns 122'', 126 were provided having a denier of
about 1250. The warp and fill yarns 122, 124 were woven using a
plain weave which resulted in the sleeve 10 having a wall thickness
of about 0.9 mm. It should be recognized that these yarn factors
can be modified by one skilled in the art in dimension and number,
while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention.
[0032] Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present
invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is,
therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended
claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as
specifically described.
* * * * *